The Most Difficult Decisions I Made While Writing The Puppet King
Hello, dear readers,
While writing my debut novel, The Puppet King, I had to make a lot of difficult decisions.
Every one of them cost me something. Some cost time. Some cost money. Some cost comfort. And some forced me to decide what kind of writer I wanted to be.
The first difficult decision had nothing to do with the book itself. At the time, I was working as a ghostwriter while also holding a traditional job. There simply weren't enough hours in the day to write my own novel. Eventually, I realized that if I truly wanted to pursue my dream of becoming a published author, I would have to give up the feeling of security I had built around myself.
So I quit. Somewhat impulsively, if I'm being honest.
I told myself that I either had to commit fully to the dream or accept a life where writing would always come second.
Looking back, the choice feels obvious. At the time, it was terrifying. But it ended up being one of the best decisions I've ever made. After that, I spent my days surrounded by stories, books, and creativity. I wrote my own novel. I wrote novels for clients. And somehow, it all worked out. For that, I will always be grateful.
The second difficult decision was keeping a particular scene in the book. A scene that I know may be triggering for some readers. I didn't include it because I wanted shock value. I didn't include it because I wanted the book to feel darker. I included it because I don't believe in censoring difficult conversations. Some subjects deserve to be talked about, even when they're uncomfortable. Even when they're painful.
I understand that this choice may reduce my chances of appealing to a wider audience. But I've never wanted the biggest audience possible. I've always wanted the right audience. The readers who don't immediately change the subject when things become uncomfortable. The readers who are willing to sit with difficult emotions and difficult truths. Because some experiences are heavy. Some topics are painful. And sometimes they deserve a voice.
The final difficult decision was deciding what kind of reading experience I wanted to create. I chose the self-publishing route. That meant every choice became my responsibility. The cover. The map. The formatting. The character artwork. The editing. The overall quality of the final product. All of it required time, research, effort, and financial investment.
Could I have taken shortcuts? Probably. But I didn't want readers to receive something rushed. I wanted them to receive the best version of the story I could create. Because long before I became a writer, I was a reader. And the reader's experience has always mattered to me.
Looking back now, I think all of these decisions were really about the same thing. Choosing what mattered most. The dream. The story. And the people who would eventually read it. None of those choices were easy. But if I had to make them again, I would choose exactly the same way.
If you’d like to follow the journey of the book I am writing and see how it’s coming together, you can find more here:
But if you want to, you can see more about my work as a ghostwriter here:
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